


I've Been Reading Too Much Rainbow Rowell

by Daydream_Deity



Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: "Mephistopheles is Caster of Limbo" theory, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Character Study, Everyone Is Alive, Fluff, Getting Together, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Kinks, M/M, Pining, Romance, Stand Alone, imagine, male reader - Freeform, no rating
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-14
Updated: 2020-01-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:22:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22259422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daydream_Deity/pseuds/Daydream_Deity
Summary: "My friend convinced me to read 'Twilight' and you probably think I'm a nerd now but surprise! Turns out you were a vampire this whole time and took this as a sign that I'm into that" AU
Relationships: Reader/Mephistopheles
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

You're thinking only one thing as you stomp toward pre-calculus class:  _ I'm gonna  _ kill _ Elizabeth for this. _

Elizabeth-although everyone prefers to call her Liz- had never shown interest in the book club until she picked up  _ Twilight._ Now, it's all she talked about, and she was all too willing to recommend it to you this month. The fact that you agreed to read it, should have said something, considering this month's club "challenge" is to read a book you don't like and rewrite a scene from it. Liz, however, has been too excited by the idea of you reading it to notice the implications.

You shake your head. It's not as if Liz or the book itself are the issue. Liz had no idea what was going to happen, and the book itself has given you plenty of inspiration for your scene-rewriting project, after all, but you just  _ had _ to leave it in the cafeteria when Ashiya Douman was there.

You sigh. You've been crushing on Ashiya "Mephistopheles" Douman since you were both high school juniors. You can never understand why he calls himself that-it's so much more  _verbose_ than his real name, to the point where you'd just call him "Mephi" if you had the confidence to do so out loud- but it probably has to do with his nature as a wild card. He's the kind of person who'd release a bunch of spiders in the gymnasium on prom night, or throw around words like "decimate" around his enemies-which includes pretty much everyone at Chaldea Community College.

You can understand why none of the other students liked Mephistopheles, but he keeps drawing you in with his charm, wit, and moments of almost-patronizing kindness. Like when he caught you on the way out of the cafeteria without your copy of  _ Twilight _ and stopped you to return it.

Turning the corner to get to your pre-calculus class, you can feel yourself blushing so hard you think your head will burst into flames. Of all the books he has to associate you with, it ends up being  _ Twilight,_ one of the most ridiculed stories of the 2000's. You've never been too confident talking to Mephi-you get butterflies in your stomach every time-but now you'll never be able to face him. You can't even confide in your roommate, Nobu- you mention your crush to them from time to time, and they spend the rest of the day mocking you. If you brought up the incident in the cafeteria... well, you'd never hear the end of it.

You duck into classroom 145 just as the bell rang. Sighing again, you slink to the seat in the back-left corner of the room. You need to process all of this and try to regain your dignity.


	2. Chapter 2

You're early, so after you sit down, you pull out your notebook and plop it onto the table. Maybe if you write about what you're feeling, it'd help you feel be-

_"Hey!!"_

Ah, it's Elizabeth. How _wonderbar_.

The ginger doesn't hesitate to grab the chair next to you. She props her elbows on the table, her hands holding up her face. Her innocent gaze in your direction almost melts your irritation over her indirect hand in your predicament. _Almost_.

 _"So,_ how are you liking the book?" she beamed.

A chuckle escapes your lips as you push your notebook to the side. "You know we're not supposed to like the book we chose, right?"

"I know..." Liz scooches her chair closer toward yours. "But I was hoping you'd change your mind. It's always magical when someone likes the same things as you, right?"

Some of Lizzie's statement is probably meant to be ironic, considering _you're_ the one who recommended _her_ book for this month. Speaking of which...

"Have you decided what _Flatland_ scene you're going to rewrite for the club project?"

"I think I'm gonna rewrite the whole 'lines that are not lines' bit. I mean, it's basically the first glimpse at a new dimension, and wouldn't it be cool if such a thing were portrayed as a way to learn fascinating new things, instead of some mind-melting horror?"

"That sounds like a delightful take on things, Elizabeth," a third, dainty voice joins in.

You and Elizabeth look up to see your final book club member, Jeanne, hovering over you, her copy of _Paradise Lost_ clutched over her chest as always. She still has that whimsical, almost sad smile about her that she wears everyday. You and Elizabeth both give out a faint "hi" and a half-hearted wave. It's not as if you two don't like her- far from it; as the only members of Chaldea Community's book club, you're as thick as thieves. It's just that most days involve you and Liz sharing a discussion before Jeanne shows up stealthily.

"Do you know what scene you want to rewrite, Bruce?" Jeanne continues.

"I know what _concept_ I want to tackle." You absentmindedly pull out _Twilight_ and start leading through it, ignoring the actual words on the pages. "I definitely want to tone down Edward's creepiness and give him more of a personality, but there's-"

"Wait a minute!"

You peek up from your book. "What is it, Liz?"

She murmurs something about stains on the back cover, and, sure enough, when you turn the book around, you can see dark, almost _glittery_ fuchsia spots.

You gasp. "I'm _so_ sorry! I know this copy means a lot to you, and I _promise_ I'll buy you a new-"

"It's not the stain _itself_ that matters," Liz interrupts. "What were you doing hanging out with _Ashiya Douman?!"_

"Huh?! How do you know if he has anything to _do_ with me? _Or_ this book?" You yelp, trying to save your skin (it's a good thing no one else is in class, yet, or you'd probably receive some weird looks).

A sigh. "Sorry, I'll admit I jumped the gun there. But that color's _definitely_ Sparkling Raspberry Death Bomb, and Douman is the only person in this school who uses it."

"How do you know that?" Jeanne chirps up.

Liz smirks, glancing over her shoulder. "I'm something of a makeup connoisseur. Now, then..." she turns back to you. "Why're you hanging out with _Douman,_ of all people?"

If Liz's sudden question doesn't have you flushed beyond belief, the distain for Mephisto in her voice does.

"It's nowhere _near_ what you're making it out to be," you stammer, shoving the novel back into your bag. "I left it in the cafeteria earlier today, and he returned it."

Jeanne places a hand to her chin. "That was nice of him," she remarks.

"That's so _weird_." Liz's eyebrows screw into a knot as she says the word "weird." "Ashiya Douman would _never_ do _anything_ nice without an ulterior motive, even something as simple as return a forgotten book. What could he want from you...?"

"There's no reason to be so suspicious," Jeanne chides, finally sitting down. "He's probably just trying to be nice." She glances at you with a smirk on her face. "He might even _like_ you."

The only thing that keeps you from miming Elizabeth's "BLUH" of disbelief is the fact that you see a gaggle of students flooding into the classroom. You shove your book into your backpack and give Liz a gentle nudge so she turns down the volume. Jeanne already has her math textbook out. You slowly pull your notebook back towards you and retrieve a pencil from your backpack.

"Can I borrow one, too?" Liz stage-whispers. (You're lucky that metal shop is in the room attached to this one. It's so noisy that Liz can get away with using this volume.)

You roll your eyes affectionately before grabbing another pencil and passing it to her. It's less stubby than the one you're using, but only because you don't _like_ to use it. It has a pink, "cutesy" pattern of rainbows and unicorns, and you always feel awkward whenever you use a pencil that looked so "girly." It's perfect however, for Elizabeth, who had gone through three notebooks in the last semester because she insists on using the same type of Magi☆Mari notebook for _everything_. You hear Liz tear a page out of her _fourth_ copy of said notebook and scribble something down. She slides the paper toward you.

 _How could someone who_ literally _wants people to call him_ Mephistopheles _like_ you? _No offense,_ it says.

You consider ignoring the question, especially since you can hear Professor Babbage enter the classroom, but find yourself adding to the note. Whatever. It's not as if the teacher will cover something you don't already know.

 _I dunno,_ you write. _If I had to guess, he seems like the kind of person who likes bad boys. And I'm pretty bad... at almost everything. XD_

 _Don't be too hard on yourself. You got, like, a_ 94 _on the entrance exam._

You sigh when you read her response. You're honestly kind of surprised that she remembered. You told her that, what? A year and a half ago? _Two_ years?

 _I mean stuff that he'd_ care _about,_ you write, lost in thought. _Besides, he's too handsome for me._

Just as you realize you've essentially revealed your feelings about Ashiya, Liz snatches the paper from under your nose. She lets out a huge, bubbly laugh as she whizzes through what you wrote. _Curses!_ you think, slamming your head on the table. You try covering your head with your hands- not like _that'll_ do any goo-

You hear Mr. Babbage sharply murmur your last name.

"You two know that passing notes is against the rules," he says when you look up at him. "And you know what happens when you try to do it anyway."

As Babbage tugs the note out of Liz's hand, you notice that she's sweating. You probably are, too, if you aren't blushing red as a tomato again.

Professor Babbage walks almost mechanically to the front of the classroom and begins to read the note.

Everyone is staring right at him, hanging onto his every word. Even Jeanne, who has been trying to act as if nothing happened.

You hear Anastasia, a sophomore in the front row, sigh as Babbage enunciates the first part of the note. You sit up and shoot Liz an annoyed glare. She mouths _I'm sorry!_ back at you before putting her own head on the table.

"'...got, like, a 94 on the entrance exam.'" the teacher continues. He locks eyes with you, his expression more stern than you've seen it before. "In _that_ case, you should know better than to pass notes in class."

Giggles arise from your fellow students. When the professor gets to the part where you call Mephistopheles "handsome," they only get louder, and a few confused "huhs" rise from your classmates. Liz slides a hand over to you and gives you a gentle squeeze of pity. You return it, as a way if accepting her apology. You pray that whoever's in metal shop didn't hear Professor Babbage's booming voice.


End file.
